Description

Every night when you go to bed and darkness falls... They come out, from under the bed, from in the closet, to fight for your bedroom. To steal your nightmares.

Monster Ball is a turn-based, hex-grid strategy game in which the player leads an army of green, ball shaped monsters against an identical opposing army in an attempt to gain control of a child's bedroom. The title makes use of a facetious-horror design that provides a sense of levity in an otherwise murky setting.

Gameplay is founded on the simplicity and plainness of the board game checkers, with each unit being identical to another in terms of function but of varying degrees of strength, which is dictated by the size of the monster. At the beginning of each turn players move one of their respective monster balls up to two spaces in any direction across the game board. If the monster ball lands on a space already occupied by an opponent then they battle, with the larger of the two swallowing the smaller and growing in proportion to the size of the devoured enemy. In the event that a monster grows too large it explodes, thereby depriving the player of one of their pieces.

As an additional factor there are numerous special tiles, such as rocket launchers and fortresses, strewn across the board, which are activated when landed on. Also present are 'mystery' tiles, whose effects vary widely, from indiscriminate rocket launcher attacks to a functionless shimmer of sparkles. Depending on the type of tile that is used it will either have only one use, disappearing afterward, or it will remain on the board for the entirety of the game; new special tiles occasionally appearing at random on the board to replace those used.

The game is presented as an assortment of unrelated scenarios, rather than a cohesive campaign, each with their own theme or play style. Each of the scenarios has a uniquely sized board and one of two victory conditions; obliterating all of the enemy monsters or instead capturing their flag. Additional scenarios can be downloaded within the game to add to those included with it.

A system of trophy rewards is supported within the game which rewards the player with either a bronze, silver, gold, or platinum award based on their accomplishments. Among the available trophies that players can gain are "Killing Spree", "Rocketeer", and "Death or Glory".